Happy Birthday, Ansel Adams, From Your UA Friends

Feb. 14, 2017

The late Ansel Adams, co-founder of the University of Arizona Center for Creative Photography, was one of the most visible and widely praised American photographers of the 20th century, revered for his striking images and advocacy for the preservation of the nation's wilderness areas.

To celebrate what would have been Adams' 115th birthday on Feb. 20, the UA center is hosting a print viewing and lecture with Becky Senf, chief curator. Senf will present a look at Adams' life through her favorite pieces in the center's archives.

The Feb. 18 event, underwritten by the Western Photographic Historical Society, will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Center for Creative Photography, 1031 N. Olive Road. Senf's talk will be at 2.

Also, Leslie Squyres, head of the Volkerding Study Center, will offer small-group tours of the Ansel Adams flat file drawers in the "From the Vault" exhibition. Tour space is limited, and day-of registration is required for the tours.

The center also is inviting members of the public to share their own photographic images influenced by the work of Adams by using the handle #inspiredbyansel on Instagram.

The Ansel Adams Archive at the Center for Creative Photography holds more than 2,500 items, which include fine prints, negatives, correspondence publications and photographic equipment.

Photos courtesy of the UA Center of Creative Photography and the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust, which holds copyright to all works by Adams. Any reprint of Adams' images requires the expressed written permission of the Ansel Adams Publishing Rights Trust. To inquire, contact Gina Compitello-Moore, marketing manager for the UA Museum of Art and the Center for Creative Photography, at 520-626-7978 or ginacompitello@email.arizona.edu.